# Helping Natural Healing ## Introduction This is an alternative to natural healing, replacing the rules for short rests and long rests. Characters no longer automatically heal all hit points overnight, but instead use a common pool of hit dice throughout the day to represent the limits of natural healing in the face of sustained punishment. However, skilled characters can help their friends by **tending wounds**, preparing **hot meals**, and gathering **medicinal herbs**, making each hit die go further. If magical healing (such as potions or spells) is applied under this care, it also benefits from the support, resulting in more healing than would occur mid-battle. This also adds extra weight to party decisions such as whether to light a fire when making camp (to prepare a hot meal, but perhaps be noticed), to sleep in a comfy bed (instead of the wild), or to travel slow enough to gather herbs. ## Summary Table | Rest | Benefit | | --- | --- | | Short Rest | Use up to 1/3 Level (round up) hit dice to restore hit points, with modifiers below based on care | | Long Rest | 1. Heal [Level + Con mod] hit points (double if sleeping in a bed) <br> 2. Use any remaining hit dice (with modifiers from Short Rest) <br>3. Recover all hit dice for next day (cannot be used immediately) | ## After a Short Rest After a Short Rest, characters can recover hit points by rolling their hit dice. They can roll a number of hit dice equal to their total character Level divided by 3, rounded up (so Levels 1-3 roll 1 die, 4-6 roll 2 dice, 7-9 roll 3, etc.). They add their Constitution modifier to each roll plus any bonuses based on help they receive. Recovering characters receive bonuses to their hit die rolls when their wounds are tended or they enjoy a nice, hot meal to speed healing. If an ally has had opportunities to collect medicinal herbs recently, these can be incorporated into either tending wounds or cooking (but not applied on their own). The same character cannot both tend wounds and cook, but anyone can have collected medicinal herbs throughout the day. * Any character can attempt to **tend wounds** for their allies. * Roll Medicine ability check against a DC based on the conditions (see [Difficulties](#helping-healing-difficulties) table below). On success they add +1 hp per HD. A character with the *Healer* feat rolls with advantage. * Regardless of the outcome of the roll, if the medic is proficient in Medicine: add +1 hp per HD (+2 with Expertise). * If they are proficient in Medicine and spend a use of a Healers Kit: add +1 hp per HD. A character with the *Healer* feat also restores 1d6 + 4 hit points, plus additional hit points equal to the creature's maximum number of Hit Dice (as per the normal feat) if it hasn't already before the rest. * If the group has a **hot meal** prepared for them, such as at an inn or in the field from a character skilled with Cook's Utensils (tools) cooking rations or foraged food over a fire, healing is improved. Cold meals provide no benefit to healing. * Food prepared at an establishment gives +1 hp (for low quality) or +2 hp (for high quality) per HD. * A cook in the field rolls an ability check with Wisdom + Proficiency against a DC based on the conditions (see [Difficulties](#helping-healing-difficulties) table below). Failure adds +1 hp per HD, Success adds +2 hp per HD. Even a mediocre hot meal is better than hardtack. * A character with the *Chef* feat rolls with advantage. They can also restore an extra 1d8 hit points (as per the normal feat, not modified by tending wounds, hot meals, or medicinal herbs). * A character proficient with an Herbalism Kit is assumed to be collecting **medicinal herbs** when in appropriate environments (the wilds, not in cities or at sea). Roll an ability check with Wisdom + Proficiency against a DC based on the local availability of medicinal herbs (see [Difficulties](#helping-healing-difficulties) table below) to see how collection has been going lately. On success they add +2 hp per HD if the herbs can be added to tending wounds or a hot meal. * Any healing spells cast or healing potions consumed during this rest (but not Lay On Hands) receives the same bonuses from tending wounds, hot meals, or medicinal herbs. * A Bard's Song of Rest adds +1d6 hp per Short Rest (more at higher levels) if a Hit Die, healing spell, or healing potion is spent (not modified by tending wounds, hot meals, or medicinal herbs). \pagebreakNum ### Short Rest Modifiers Summary | Care | When | Modifier to Hit Die roll, healing spell, or healing potion | | --- | --- | :---: | | Resting | Always | +Con mod | Tending Wounds | Medicine Roll success | +1 | | Medicine proficiency/ expertise | +1/+2 | | Spend Healer's Kit use | +1 | Hot Meal | Prepared Meal (low/high quality) | +1/+2 | | Cooking Roll (fail/succeed) | +1/+2 | Medicinal Herbs added to above | Herbalism Roll success | +2 | Song of Rest | (increases with Bard level) | +1d6 | Chef feat | | +1d8 | | Healer feat | Spend Healer's Kit use | +1d6+4+Level | ## After a Long Rest After a Long Rest, characters can recover hit points, a few automatically and potentially more using remaining hit dice. They also recover spent hit dice for the day ahead. * Automatically heal hit points equal to character's level + Constitution modifier (this occurs even if their hit dice pool is depleted). If in sleeping comfortably in a bed, this value is doubled. * Then recover hit points with any remaining hit dice from the past day as per Short Rest. * In the morning, recover all hit dice into their Hit Dice Pool, which can then be spent in the coming day (but not immediately). ## Difficulties The DC levels for each of the three skills depend on the conditions they are performed under. | DC | | Medicine | Cooking | Herbalism | | ---: | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 5 | | Hospital, Clinic | Stocked Kitchen | Herb Garden | | 10 | | Clean Shelter like an Inn or house | <--Same | Prime foraging territory | | 15 | | Wild, but good conditions, like a prepared campsite | <--Same | Standard Wilderness conditions | | 20 | | Wild and poor conditions, such as dirty or hastily arranged | <--Same | Barren Tundra or Desert |